Felonies are offenses punishable by more than one year in prison. The law classifies felonies based on severity as class A, B, or C. But there are other felonies that are not designated under one of these classes. Many of these “unclassified felonies” carry the same range of possible prison terms as classified felonies but others do not. In addition, many have different maximum fines than those set for classified felonies.

We identified 262 unclassified felonies using the database of criminal charges provided to us by the Judicial Branch last year and updating it with changes from the 2012 session.

PENALTIES FOR CLASSIFIED FELONIES

Terms of imprisonment in Connecticut must be for specific periods of time. Table 1 shows the range within which the judge must set the specific sentence for classified felonies (CGS §§ 53a-35a and -41). A judge may suspend all or part of a prison sentence unless the statute specifies that it is a mandatory minimum sentence. The judge also sets the exact amount of a fine, up to the established limits. A judge may impose a fine, a term or imprisonment, or both.

Table 1: Penalties for Classified Felonies

Classification

Prison Term

Maximum Fine

Class A felony (murder with special circumstances)

Life in prison without release

Class A felony (murder)

25 to 60 years

$20,000

Class A felony

10 to 25 years

$20,000

Class B felony*

1 to 20 years

$15,000

Class C felony

1 to 10 years

$10,000

Class D felony

1 to 5 years

$5,000

*Except 1st degree manslaughter with a firearm which carries a maximum prison term of 40 years.

In addition to the penalties in Table 1, certain penalties may be enhanced for persistent offenders

UNCLASSIFIED FELONIES AND THEIR PENALTIES

Table 2 displays all of the unclassified felonies, their citations, and their penalties, organized in descending order by maximum prison penalty. In some instances, a crime has different penalties for second and subsequent convictions. We indicate whether a penalty is for a 1st offense, 2nd offense, or subsequent offense (SBS). We also indicate, with an “m,” when a crime carries a mandatory minimum sentence.